Holiday Fun, 5 Dec 09

Raeyen's favourite character came to town - Thomas the Tank Engine. To surprise him, I took him and Kieran to catch the show at the Indoor Stadium. He was visibly thrilled. I was however surprised that the organiser did not have many souvenir on sale to cash in from zealous kids and generous parents. Unlike many other shows such as Disney On Ice, this one has very limited merchandise for sale, only some tees, light spinners and posters. As usual, seeing other kids having the light spinner, Raeyen wanted one. I explained that it was a waste of money as he would not play after that and it only affect him from watching the show.

To me, the show was OK. While the cast was pretty good, the Fat Controller was unfortunately played by someone lean with the help of a spongy prop as tummy. The storyline was also so-so. The interval was longer than announced, so I think the ticket was on a high side. Nonetheless, it was almost full-house!

Anyway, so long as the kids enjoy, it's still worth it.

Holiday Fun, 23 Nov 09

We applied leave to take our kids to Kids Amaze at SAFRA Jurong. It's huge and the entrance fee is quite all right. It has what looks like a 6-storey high tower made of kid-friendly materials with lots of cushioned pillars and mats. There were "cannons" where kids could shoot foam balls against insect boards. We enjoyed that alot. Kieran loved the long, spiral tubal slide most. Initially Raeyen was skeptical trying it but the thrill soon overcame his fear and he enjoyed the slide tremendously and without us accompanying him.

Is there joy in schooling here?

I feel a little emotional whenever I hear news of school-kid committed suicide. Some as young as in primary schools.

What made them do it? What was the motivation pushing a tiny soul to end the journey?

There are many questions in my head. Was it pressure from school, parents, peers or the society? Was there ever any happiness or joy in our educational system? What is our value system - meritocratic or ??? I don't know the answer. What I do know is the stress all of us have today. We have to cope so many things in a day. For me, coaching Kieran in his school work on weekday evenings becomes a chore. It irks me whenever he doesn't understand what I was explaining. My heart aches and my mind goes bonkers. I don't think I can take it. Initially we thought the after-school care could help, but it doesn't, and so did my friends told me.

So what parents to do?

We enrolled him in Singapore's favourite haunting place - tuition centre. Much to my displeasure. But what can we do? Pop goes our weekends of family togetherness and comes chaotic madness of chauffeuring. I don't know if it's good for Kieran or me; but I really don't know which is best.

AGAIN I stress, I DON'T LIKE OUR EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM! There is no balance, kids are stretched, so are parents. It's like a test to our tensile strength, waiting for the breaking point.

Mid-Autumn Festival & Children's Day Party by the Park

Raeyen's Kindy organised a party yesterday to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival-cum-Children's Day at a park near our place and families were invited. That, was a very nice gesture and a great opportunity for family bonding.

Kids were thrilled, took their Transformers lanterns, picnic mats and snacks. Kieran got to see his ex-classmates and teachers. It was a cloudy day and the moon was not visible, as a result.

During registration, Raeyen saw his favourite teacher, Mrs Rai and took a photo with her. He also joined his schoolmates at the "stage" singing songs that they learned. He really loves performing. Now he and Kieran are into the Wonder Girls' Nobody!

There was a walkabout around the park and some games. Raeyen was busy playing catch with his buddies while Kieran played ball. Both were drenched with sweat in the unbelievable heat! And, I was attacked by the irritating mozzies, arrgh!

We didn't win the make-your-own-lantern by parent-and-child contest and Raeyen could not understand why he didn't get a prize. He persistently asked, "Why Mommy, why I don't have a prize? Where is my prize?"

Kieran's part 2 celebration

We celebrated again on Sunday with our extended family at our home over dinner.

I prepared portobello soup, while my helper cooked sweet & sour chicken, eggs, Indonesian vege rolls and fried vermicelli.

The family arrived with Meg still decked in her sweet ballerina costume. Raeyen was very excited when he saw the pressie from them to Kieran and kept asking when it could be opened.

The kids ate together as they watched a movie from Disney Channel while the adults had theirs at the dining table, chatting from cycling to our home. We had Choya Royal Honey (click here to discover different ways of concocting a nice Choya drink) with lemonade as an aperitif and ended with Crabtree & Evelyn chamomile tea.

The whole clan proceeded to the playroom to reminisce May and our good 'ol days flipping through photo albums from secondary school to our wedding to our European holiday together.

The kids then played the remote-controlled chopper that May bought for Kieran before saying goodbye.

Kieran turned 7!

Hubby and I made plans to bring Kieran out on Thursday and Friday, respectively as a prelude to his birthday, afterall the school was closed on both days due to PSLE Oral exam.

Thursday. Hubby took him for a movie - G I Joe, as the title implies, it's very apt for male bonding. I bought the tickets for them at lunch and the came over to meet me for a quick one before scooting off for the show. They met me again after work. Kieran had evidently enjoyed the movie as he related part of the story to me on our way home by MRT.

Friday. After rushing home from half-day's work, I took Kieran and Raeyen to Orchard Road. Raeyen tagged along as I couldn't bear to leave him home. First stop was Kinokuniya for books; Kieran chose Star Wars while Raeyen had Thomas the Tank Engine. While we were walking to Takashimaya from Wisma Atria, we took a short-cut through Guess and a LBD caught my eyes.... I tried, the boys squealed that it was nice on me.... and yes I bought it. Then we went Bakerzin for desserts before going to Borders for more books. We left Orchard to meet hubby for dinner at Ajisen.

Saturday. We collected Kieran's Raspberry cheesecake from Secret Recipe at Square 2 but it was badly done (as you can see in the photo), even the quality of the cake has gone South. It was disappointing which I have no mood to detail here. Anyway, the kids had fun with their cousins as usual. Joo family even flew in his pressie from Perth - Ben 10 Alien Force swimwear + board shorts. Raeyen also had a new Lightning McQueen suit. Kieran wants Star Wars lego which he has yet found one that he likes because most are bad guys.

Myopic Kieran

Kieran first had an eye check in school and did not score a 6/6. He was then referred to Health Promotion Board for a refraction test to confirm his short-sightedness.

Due to my travelling schedule, we managed to get an appointment for today at 3.45pm. It is now confirmed that our little boy is myopic, 1.25 right and 1.00 left with slight astigmatism. This also means he needs glasses. The optometrist said his astig might be in-born.

Hubby was disappointed and he feels wearing glasses would impede Kieran's active lifestyle in playing sports.

Kieran, the bronze swimmer

Have been so busy that I couldn't find time to update my blog!

Anyway, Kieran took his first swimming test last Saturday, 12 April at Raffles Institution. It was for the Bronze stage, which is the basic.

He was jittery at first but warmed up real soon.

He swam 16 x 25m, treaded water for 3 minutes, stayed afloat for 1 and made a float from his PJs.

What was unexpected after the test in the waters was the survival Q&A test, which his instructor did not inform us about. He was asked what one couldn't do at a swimming pool. He scratched his head and answered only when prompted.

Once the examiner said, "Congratulations, you passed the test.", Kieran was beaming and so were we.

I am so proud of him.

Kieran the model

Kieran played model while preparing to attend a wedding dinner, on his daddy's behalf. Shirt and jeans from Old Navy.

It was Friday the 13 when the dinner took place. Hubby worked late hence Kieran became my partner. The dinner was held at Havelock Road near Zouk and I decided to drive there. I wasn't sure of the location, got lost and circled around Chinatown twice until I met my guardian angel. The KFC delivery guy was riding on his bike, halting next to us at the junction. I asked him (who is a Chinese national) for direction and he led me to our venue! How sweet of him!

Play

Snapped some pictures of the boys playing at home.

Farmer & Builder at work (Raeyen used playdoh as "dirt" for his dump truck)

Leapad Fun

A nice afternoon with Kieran

This week begins the first week of school holiday in 2009.

I took leave to spend some time with the kids. After Kieran's cartoon drawing class yesterday, the whole family had lunch at Swensen's to enjoy its 1-for-1 weekday lunch promotion. After lunch, I took him to my hairstylist for a hair cut while I have my usual hair treatment. Kieran has never stepped into a professional hair salon (he either goes to a"ma-ma" shop or those $10 Japanese-styled quick-cut hair shops) before and this was his maiden experience and he likes it very much.

Despite having a good lunch, he asked me to bring him for some food after the haircut. So I took him to Hairloom & Caramel for another new cafe dining experience. That was my second visit. Previously, I dined there with Ivy and Josephine where I had tofu salad ($7.50) and they had chicken salad in honey mustard dressing ($8.50), with a cup of homemade lemongrass drink on the house.

Once we stepped in, Kieran already likes it. Looking at the montage above, you too, will fall in love with its quirky decor and ambience. I like the upholstery of the chairs and stools in particular, as well as the wall mural. I read from a magazine that the owners designed the place and bought the furniture. My hungry son, who is in a growth spurt now, had creme brulee (my fav too) and a eggnog cup cake while I only had its signature Vita Plum (ice-blended vitagen with sour plum).

It's nice to spend a quiet afternoon with my little boy to bond and talk nonsense. Wonder when will I do the same with my other little boy, Raeyen.

A Chinese who failed Chinese

My poor boy failed his first Chinese test on Monday.

While he was nonchalant about it, his mom was anxious like an ant in a hot pot!

Friends said I should put him in a Chinese enrichment class, such as from TienHsia or Beijing Language School or private tuition. My goodness!

Tomorrow, he's going to attempt Maths test for the second time.

Oh, how I loathe our education system!

Brain Food

Kieran and Raeyen have been taking Scotts Emulsion cod liver oil the moment they turned one-year old.

In order to give them a better "brain food" besides getting it directly from fish, I have decided to venture on a highly recommended fish oil - Children's DHA by Nordic Naturals (supposedly "supports brain development, and visual and nervous system function") to replace Scotts.

Some local websites are selling at about S$42 each while at iHerb, where I placed my order today, costs US$20.36. If you were to place order for the first time with iHerb, you will get a US$5 discount using the code "CIL778" at billing.

I hope both my angels will like it... this is just my little way of boosting their learning capability (Kieran's starting P1 is giving me the quivers already).

Kieran goes P1

2 January was another milestone for Kieran as he begins his primary education.

The evening before I asked him how he felt about tomorrow. He said he was scared and I shared with him how I felt the same when I was going P1 and it's perfectly alright to feel this way. The anxiety is understable and I told him that everyone does through the same as there are many new experiences awaiting for us to discover.

I couldn't sleep that night after preparing his bag and other stuff for after-school care. We reminded him to wake up between 6.45-7am the next day so that he would have enough time to leave home by 7.30am.

The next morning, before I could wake him at 6.45am, I was greeted by a wide-grinned (but blurry-eyed) Kieran with a cheery, "Good Morning, Mommy". I was pleased.

When I took him to his classroom, he was all ready. He was smiling at me and even asked us to leave after school while he was about to go for after-school care. Hubby and I then went home to dismantle Raeyen's cot and put aside their old but working toys. Raeyen then returned from his 1st day back at the Kindy. Our ever-cheery Raeyen came back in happy mood and was telling me he saw all his old classmates. After lunch, hubby and I went to the Salvation Army to donate the old toys and some clothes.

In the evening, we picked Kieran home and he was happy to see us, there was no trace of lethargy. His vice-principal was surprised that after 11 hours out from home, he was still active.

That night was the first time Kieran moved up to his double-decker bed and Raeyen to sleep on the lower-deck. Kieran was excited to be able to sleep on higher ground. We were worried if Raeyen would get used to sleeping on Kieran's bed as he has been sleeping in my bedroom since birth. But he was soon fell asleep in my arms at 9pm and slept soundly in his "new, big-boy" bed till 7.30am this morning.

The Day the Tooth Fairy Came

Kieran's first milk tooth finally came off on Thursday 29 December 2008. He had wanted to place the tooth under his pillow right in the middle like what Lola did in the book "My wobbly tooth must not ever NEVER fall out" so that the tooth fairy may replace it with a coin for him to buy something in return.

Due to hygiene purpose, we discouraged him from doing but discarded the tooth. He was nonchalant about it and said he would then dream of happy things like Lola did so that the tooth fairy would notice the gap between his teeth which meant he really did lose his tooth.

So what happened the next morning?

He ran to his dad with a dollar coin he found under his pillow. When I woke up, he showed me the same with a wide grin.

The Kids' Concert

Last Saturday, 1 November was Kieran's graduation concert and Raeyen's maiden performance. It was a moment we have been looking forward to witness these little milestones at the Victoria Concert Hall.


Their videoclips can be found in my Facebook.

Photoshoot at the Kindy

The Kindy had a photoshoot for the kids, K2 graduands and their families.

Water Babies

My sis-in-law in Perth bought swimwear for both Kieran and Raeyen from Target. Thanks Connie!!!

A 2-piece Spiderman for Kieran and a 1-piece Cars for Raeyen. The moment they opened the package from mail, they were thrilled and wanted to try them on.

Raeyen was particularly happy, dancing around with his new swimwear.



To-date, Kieran is improving in his weekly swimming lesson. He could swim in breadth without help. He has been quite reluctant to swim that far even with much coaxing from his coach. I had to tell him to believe in himself and, with confidence he could make anything possible.

Outing on 22 August

As hubby couldn't apply leave to celebrate Kieran's actual birthday, together with Yani, we took both boys for lunch at The Central by taking MRT to Clarke Quay.

Knowing that Kieran loves Japanese food and having read a good review in Urban, I decided to scout for Ramen Santouka for its succulent pork cheek at $8 a serving. We were there during the office lunch hours and had to wait for about 15 minutes to be seated. We ordered 2 set meals and pork cheek. Boy, they were so good that we ordered another serving of pork cheek.

Then we took the MRT to Vivocity (the kids and my fav haunt). As usual, we went to the pet shop to see some cute puppies and hamsters. Kieran was pestering me to get him a pair of hamsters but I relented, I told him that he is too young to mind them. We saw a gleaming red Ferrari race car on display and the boys were very excited.

Then we went to Marks & Spencer for some cookies and Gloria Jeans for a cuppa (hot chocolate for my boys) before heading home early to beat the after-office hours office crowd.

It was a fun day with the kids.

I am looking forward to our day out (this time with hubby) on 1 September.

Kieran's celebration part 2

Celebrated at my mom's place on Saturday with his favourite tiramisu cake from Bakerzin. He was a happy boy because he received presents that he has also wanted ...

1. Lego Ferrari truck & car (8153)
2. Lego 3-in-1 Racers
3. Read & Write LeapPad
4. LeapPad Books
5. 3-in-1 Binoculars
6. Red packets
7. Spiderman swimsuit from his Sar-Gu, Sar-Kim & Jamus gor-gor

It was also a special day for Kieran as we managed to catch glimpses of fireworks near my mom's place. Every year, we get to celebrate his birthday accompanied by some fireworks!

Nowadays, Kieran is very much into Lego and I am happy for that. We would pester me to open the box and guide him fix the items. I must say he is pretty good at it now. Whenever there is a promotion for Lego, I would buy him an item or two. But whatever he is playing with, Raeyen will want to get his hands onto it. Yesterday, Raeyen lost Kieran's Lego police car (Kieran was very upset) and we were searching for it high and low. This morning, Yani managed to help us find it, phew!